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HONOLULU—President Barack Obama plunged into a long-awaited and high-stakes mission to re-establish U.S. leadership in the Pacific but is bumping into the expanding influence of China at every turn. Mr. Obama hosted a forum of 21 Asian-Pacific nations in Hawaii over the weekend. But one of those countries, China,sacs louis vuitton occupied an outsized share of the president's attention and that of his aides, underscoring the challenges the U.S. faces in the Pacific. One of Mr. Obama's core objectives is to serve notice that the United States will serve as a counterweight to China's growing economic, diplomatic and military influence. "This trip is very much about extending a clear signal that the United States is going to be fully present in the economic, security and political future of the Asia-Pacific region, and it takes place in the context of a rising China," Ben Rhodes, a deputy national security adviser at the White House, said in an interview Sunday. The president framed his central message on Saturday: "The United States is a Pacific power and we are here to stay." Enlarge Image APEC Close APEC Associated Press Chinese President Hu Jintao, left, met with Barack Obama on Saturday in Honolulu. Mr. Obama said the American public is increasingly frustrated with China's slow pace of change. But China has proven to be a continuous complication. On trade, Mr. Obama has repeatedly pressured China to allow its currency to appreciate, only to be told by Beijing that China is doing enough. On national security, China is extending its claims in the region, worrying U.S. partners and allies who both depend on China for trade but fear it may exercise its power in more forceful ways. As a result, China's neighbors have implored the U.S. to deepen its involvement. "The nations of the region very much want us here," Mr. Rhodes said. The tensions were on full display this week, with more to come as Mr. Obama heads next to Australia and then Indonesia. On the economic front, Mr. Obama announced advances over the weekend in a regional free trade deal, called the Trans-Pacific Partnership, that excludes Beijing for the foreseeable future. WSJ's Chana Schoenberger has details of U.S. companies being deterred from taking advantage of easy access to the Chinese Yuan by bureaucracy and paperwork. Photo: STR/AFP/Getty Images To get in, China would have to foster more competition between private companies and state-owned enterprises, and boost protection of intellectual property rights, conditions China will have difficulty meeting.